Operational Variation, Detention and Additional Fee Schedule
1. Function of this Schedule
This Schedule sets out the additional charges that may arise where the actual operational requirements of a booked movement differ from, exceed or materially depart from the assumptions built into the original quoted service.
The quoted booking price is ordinarily generated on the basis of a defined transport scope, including:
- expected vehicle type;
- expected loading profile;
- expected site readiness;
- declared goods characteristics; and
- expected timing conditions.
Where the actual job extends beyond that baseline, ShipSherpa may apply supplementary charges to reflect the additional time, labour, disruption, equipment commitment or route impact created by that variation.
This Schedule applies across:
- same-day courier work;
- dedicated vehicle movements;
- trunking;
- linehaul;
- ecommerce logistics;
- returns;
- overflow transport;
- enterprise dispatch; and
- API-originated bookings.
2. Charging Principle
Additional fees under this Schedule are intended to reflect genuine operational extension or service deviation. They are not intended to penalise normal use of the ShipSherpa platform.
Charges may arise where one or more of the following occurs:
- vehicle attendance exceeds the included waiting allowance;
- loading or unloading requirements exceed the declared booking scope;
- additional labour is required;
- holiday or peak-day conditions materially affect resourcing costs;
- detention, redelivery or route amendment occurs;
- the consignment is materially different from what was declared;
- site conditions delay or complicate completion; or
- enterprise or API workflows call for pre-agreed exception pricing.
Where a separate master services agreement, enterprise rate card or account-specific pricing schedule expressly overrides this Schedule, that negotiated arrangement shall prevail to the extent of any inconsistency.
3. Included Assumptions and When Extra Fees Begin
The original quoted service includes only the operational scope expressly presented at the time of booking.
Unless separately stated, the quote does not automatically include:
- extended site detention;
- prolonged waiting;
- unbooked handballing;
- unbooked multi-person support;
- pallet breakdown or stock separation;
- upper-floor delivery or non-standard placement;
- return handling outside the planned route;
- undeclared dimensions, weight or load complexity;
- additional security clearance delays;
- repeated proof-of-delivery administration; or
- redelivery cycles.
Where any of those factors arise, additional fees may be charged in accordance with this Schedule.
4. Attendance and Waiting Charges
A waiting fee may be charged where a vehicle or crew is kept beyond the included grace period at collection, delivery or any intermediate operational point.
Waiting time may be measured using one or more of the following:
- GPS arrival confirmation;
- application status records;
- geo-fenced site events;
- dispatch log timestamps; or
- manual operations validation where reasonably required.
Waiting charges apply only after the grace period for the relevant vehicle class has expired.
4.1 Vehicle Waiting Rates
| Vehicle class | Solo operator or driver rate | Two-person crew rate | Waiting charge starts |
|---|---|---|---|
| Car | £12 per hour | N/A | After 30 minutes |
| Small Van | £13 per hour | N/A | After 30 minutes |
| Short Wheelbase | £13 per hour | N/A | After 30 minutes |
| Long Wheelbase | £14 per hour | £22 per hour | After 30 minutes |
| Extra Long Wheelbase | £14 per hour | £22 per hour | After 30 minutes |
| Luton | £18 per hour | £27 per hour | After 30 minutes |
| 7.5 Tonne | £22 per hour | £36 per hour | After 30 minutes |
| 18–26 Tonne | £36 per hour | £55 per hour | After 60 minutes |
| Artic | £36 per hour | £55 per hour | After 60 minutes |
ShipSherpa may calculate waiting charges on a pro-rata basis unless the applicable customer contract states otherwise.
5. Additional Handling, Labour and Site Assistance
Where the booked movement requires labour, support or site handling outside the declared transport scope, ShipSherpa may charge additional handling fees.
This may include, without limitation:
- handballing;
- floor access;
- pallet split-down;
- stock movement within a site;
- driver's mate support;
- white-glove placement;
- additional unloading support;
- non-standard warehouse handover; and
- item repositioning not included in the original booking.
5.1 Standard Handling Rates
For vehicle classes from Car to Luton, the following handling charges apply:
| Circumstance | Solo rate | Two-person crew rate |
|---|---|---|
| Additional handling added after booking but before dispatch | £12 per hour | £24 per hour |
| Additional handling introduced after the job has started | £16 per hour | N/A |
| Further manual handling outside the original service scope once the job is in live execution | £20 per hour | N/A |
For 7.5 Tonne to Artic vehicle classes, the following handling rates apply:
| Vehicle class | Solo rate | Two-person crew rate |
|---|---|---|
| 7.5 Tonne to Artic | £26 per hour | £52 per hour |
These charges may apply where the original booking omitted material handling requirements.
6. Seasonal, Peak-Day and Capacity-Stress Uplift
ShipSherpa may apply an uplift where a booking falls within a period of exceptional market pressure, public holiday cost escalation or severe transport disruption.
Unless separately agreed, the following standard uplifts may apply:
| Service period | Surcharge |
|---|---|
| UK Bank Holidays | 20% |
| Christmas Day | 85% |
| Boxing Day or New Year's Day | 50% |
| Severe peak-demand events | Dynamic uplift may apply |
For the purposes of this Schedule, peak-demand conditions may include:
- Black Friday;
- Cyber Monday;
- major retail launch windows;
- severe weather recovery periods;
- national transport strike conditions; and
- other exceptional demand spikes materially affecting network resourcing.
Where a dynamic uplift applies, ShipSherpa will use reasonable efforts to surface that uplift through the platform or notify the customer through an appropriate operations channel.
7. Route Condition and Geographic Uplifts
Some route-related uplifts depend on geography, access conditions or corridor density rather than on general operational deviation.
Those charges are governed separately under the relevant ShipSherpa geographic or area pricing schedule, including charges relating to:
- rural route premiums;
- London or M25 ingress and egress;
- remote postcode zones;
- toll or ferry access; and
- low-density return corridors.
Where both this Schedule and a geographic surcharge schedule apply, each charge may be applied to the extent that it addresses a different source of additional cost.
8. Operational Exception Fees
ShipSherpa may apply further charges where a live booking generates genuine exception handling that was not included within the original route price.
Examples include:
- failed collection caused by customer no-show or non-readiness;
- redelivery requests;
- return-to-sender instructions;
- timed proof-of-delivery paperwork requirements;
- site security hold-ups;
- regional distribution centre detention;
- late booking amendments;
- route diversions;
- undeclared oversized consignments;
- pallet restack events; and
- additional compliance handling triggered by incorrect booking data.
Where reasonably practicable, such fees will be surfaced through the platform, confirmed by ShipSherpa operations or reflected in the applicable route adjustment record.
8.1 Delivery Destination Amendments
Where a customer requests a change to the delivery address, delivery postcode or final delivery destination after a booking has been confirmed, the following amendment fees shall apply:
| Timing of amendment | Amendment fee |
|---|---|
| Amendment requested within 24 hours before the scheduled collection time, but before the goods have been collected | £17.50 |
| Amendment requested after collection, once the goods are in transit | £35.00 |
The applicable amendment fee is payable in addition to any increased transport charge resulting from the revised route.
Any additional mileage created by the amendment shall be charged at two times the applicable per-mile rate for the vehicle class booked.
Additional mileage will ordinarily be calculated by reference to the additional route distance created by replacing the original delivery destination with the revised delivery destination.
For example, where the applicable vehicle rate is £1.50 per mile, additional mileage resulting from a delivery destination amendment will be charged at £3.00 per additional mile.
The delivery amendment fee and the additional mileage charge may apply together.
A delivery destination amendment remains subject to:
- driver availability and acceptance;
- vehicle suitability;
- applicable driving-time, working-time and safety restrictions;
- the revised destination being operationally reasonable;
- any geographic, toll, ferry, clean-air-zone, congestion or access surcharges; and
- ShipSherpa being able to complete the revised movement safely and lawfully.
ShipSherpa does not guarantee that a delivery destination amendment can be accepted after dispatch or collection.
Where the assigned driver cannot reasonably accommodate the revised destination, ShipSherpa may:
- arrange an alternative vehicle;
- arrange a transfer of the goods;
- return the goods to the collection point;
- deliver the goods to the original delivery destination; or
- offer another reasonable operational solution.
Further charges may apply where an alternative operational solution is required. ShipSherpa will notify the customer of those charges where reasonably practicable.
The customer must submit or confirm the revised delivery details through the ShipSherpa platform or another communication channel approved by ShipSherpa.
No delivery destination amendment shall become effective until it has been acknowledged or accepted by ShipSherpa.
The customer remains responsible for ensuring that all revised delivery information is complete and accurate, including:
- delivery address;
- postcode;
- recipient details;
- access instructions;
- contact telephone number;
- opening hours; and
- any special site or unloading requirements.
ShipSherpa shall not be responsible for delay, failed delivery or additional cost caused by inaccurate, incomplete or late amendment instructions supplied by the customer.
9. Interaction with Cancellation and Failed Dispatch Rules
Charges arising from booking withdrawal, failed collection or dispatch loss are governed primarily by the separate ShipSherpa cancellation and failed dispatch policy.
This Schedule may still apply in addition where the cancelled or failed job has also generated:
- chargeable waiting;
- additional handling;
- specialist attendance;
- detention;
- route amendment costs;
- holiday uplift exposure; or
- another live operational variation already incurred before cancellation.
10. Enterprise, API and Negotiated Pricing Structures
For enterprise and API customers, any or all of the fees in this Schedule may be:
- pre-configured in a rate card;
- surfaced through quote or booking APIs;
- replaced by fixed tariff bands;
- varied by account rules;
- overridden by service-level agreement schedules; or
- absorbed into a bespoke commercial model.
Where a master services agreement, pricing schedule or enterprise statement of work expressly overrides this Schedule, that negotiated document shall prevail to the extent of any inconsistency.
11. Evidence and Verification of Additional Charges
ShipSherpa may rely on operational data and platform evidence to support the application of charges under this Schedule, including:
- GPS logs;
- platform timestamps;
- dispatch notes;
- driver status updates;
- customer communications;
- site arrival records;
- proof-of-delivery events;
- manual operations reviews;
- API event records; and
- exception logs.
Such evidence may be retained for:
- billing;
- dispute resolution;
- fraud prevention and defence;
- insurer queries;
- regulatory or tax enquiries; and
- legal recovery.
12. Commercial Positioning
This Schedule is intended to support a pricing model that remains commercially fair and easier to work with than many legacy courier or transport networks, while still preserving:
- fleet economics;
- realistic waiting-cost recovery;
- fair resourcing of additional labour;
- credible dedicated-vehicle economics; and
- operational trust at scale.
That balance is fundamental to the ShipSherpa's marketplace model.